20 July. Interview: John Ridgway is a guest on the Doctor Who Panel to Panel podcast.

15 July. Carlos Ezquerra has been rewarded for his years of work when he was given the Inkpot Award for Achievement in Comics Art at San Diego Comic-Con during last Saturday's "Spotlight on Carlos Ezquerra" panel.

14 June. Warren Ellis suffered a "miscellaneous neurological event" which caused him to be hospitalized briefly. He's now back at home but expects to have more tests in the coming months to find out what is causing his fluctuating blood pressure. Get well soon, Warren.

Donate via PayPal

BEAR ALLEY BOOKS

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Paperback Cover Cavalcade 5

Today's Paperback Cover Cavalcade concentrates on Anthologies.

Butcher's Dozen by the Crime Writers Association (Digit R455, 1961)

This is the first anthology by members of the Crime Writers Association and all kinds of stories are to be found in it.__The selection has been made by three members of the C.W.A., who are also contributors, to cover the widest possible range of styles and to cater for all tastes, and also to show the versatility and ingenuity of the modern crime writer. The editors have contributed an introduction explaining their aims, which also contains some original comments on crime writing in general.

5 * Bell, Josephine, Gilbert Michael & Symons, Julian * Introduction

7 * Alan, Marjorie * Portrait of Eleanor * r/p (D. C. Thomson)

23 * Bell, Josephine * The Thimble River Mystery * Evening Standard,

34 * Fitt, Mary * A Death in the Black-Out * pl * (originally broadcast on the BBC)

The three editors mentioned were Josephine Bell, Michael Gilbert and Julian Symons. Originally published by William Heinemann in 1956.

Secret Agents edited by Kurt Singer (Digit R536, Oct 1961)

This exciting books tells of courage against Nazism, Communism, and other terrible forces. Some stories concern ordinary men and women, strange situations that might unexpectedly confront any one of us. Others tell of secret agents who made international headlines, such as the exclusive report on Francis G. Powers, pilot of the U-2 shot down by the Russians.__Every page glows with the kind of courage described by the late Ernest Hemingway, winner of the Nobel and Pulitzer prizes.

The original US edition by Belmont Books was published under the title The Secret Agent's Badge of Courage in 1961. See below for some comments on the origin of the book. Kurt Singer (1911-2005) was originally born Kurt Deutsch in Austria; he escaped the rise of the Nazis in Germany in 1933 by fleeing to Sweden and subsequently, in 1940, went to America where he became a naturalised citizen in 1951. He wrote dozens of books on spies and espionage, biographies of Charles Laughton, Danny Kaye and Ernest Hemingway and edited 20 or so anthologies of horror stories.

The Israeli Secret Service was willing to call the chapter closed and to admit they were shadow-boxing.__Tuvia Friedman was not convinced. With the acuteness of a bloodhound, he continued his search. The finances came from his wife, his doctor, friends, acquaintances, who believed a smoke screen was protecting Eichmann.__"Eichmann is alive," Friedman said. "I know it!"__The greatest espionage stories of all time, both fact and fiction, have been collected in this new paperback edition. Here are tales of detection, high adventure, and sudden violence. All are masterpieces.

5 * Maugham, W. Somerset * The Traitor

47 * Mueller, Edwin * The Man Who Did Business With Himmler

54 * Bruckberger, R. L. * Death of a Collaborationist

63 * Singer, Kurt * Eichmann: The Hunter and the Hunted

78 * Von Rintelen, Franz * The Dark Invader

114 * Wallace, Edgar * Code No. 2

132 * Lawrence, T. E. * Blowing Up A Train

143 * Anon. [?Singer, Kurt] * The Frogman

Published in the USA by Belmont Books according to the copyright page, but the book actually dates back to 1954 when it was published as The World's Best Spy Stories in the US by Wilfred Funk and in the UK as The World's Greatest Spy Stories by W. H. Allen. The hardcover edition (US) had 342 pages, so it is possible this is an abridged version, the second half made up from the contents of Secret Agents (above).

They Got Back. The best escape stories from the "RAF Flying Review" (Digit R733, Jul 1963)

These are the authentic escape-stories of R.A.F. aces of the last war who achieved the seemingly impossible—they got back from behind enemy lines. From Germany, from the desert, from the freezing wastes of the Arctic, they made their break for freedom, often after suffering torture in the hands of the enemy.__These are thrilling, legendary stories of epic courage and determination, of men who would never admit defeat.

A reprint anthology (originally published by Herbert Jenkins in 1961). Of the authors, I recognise Bill Wharton as a regular contributor of war and adventure features to men's magazines, Gordon Thomas as a thriller writer and Donald Henderson Clarke as an American novelist whose work dates back to the 1930s. Leslie C. Hunt would appear to be the author of The Prisoners' Progress. An illustrated diary of the march into captivity of the last of the British Army in France—June 1940 (Hutchinson & Co., 1941), who was himself a Lieut. in the East Surrey Regiment who was a P.O.W. at Oflag Vllc. in Germany. Paul Clifton was the author of The Fastest Men on Earth (Herbert Jenkins, 1964) and Geoffrey Norris wrote Jet Adventure. Airmen today and tomorrow (Phoenix House, 1962) leaving A. M. Feast as the only complete unknown.

Update: 18 November: Jamie Sturgeon passes on the speculation that A. M. Feast is a Canadian feature writer called Arnold M. Feast, who contributed to Flying magazine. Further investigation shows that Flying Officer A. M. Feast was a Beaufort pilot with 39 Squadron during WW2, shot down off the coast of Sicily in March 1943; he became a P.O.W. in Germany for the rest of the war. He died in 1988. Feast contributed to Pioneering Aviation in the West which was published posthumously by Hancock House in 1992.

The varieties of Lesbian experience...__A dissatisfied wife learns that she and her husband love the same woman—__A young girl falls in love with her father's mistress—__A college girl initiates her roommate—__A French lady dressed in man's clothes looks for her lovers—__A student learns love from her teacher—__Here is an anthology of superb stories and selections from distinguished novels that presents many variations on the theme of Lesbian love.

9 * Boyle, Kay * from Monday Night

19 * De Maupassant, Guy * Paul's Mistress

39 * Mallet, Francoise * from The Illusionist * ex

65 * Lewis, Sinclair * from Ann Vickers * ex

77 * Gautier, Theophile * from Mademoiselle de Maupin * ex

115 * Willingham, Calder * The Sum of Two Angles

125 * Lawrence, D. H. * from The Rainbow * ex

145 * Mansfield, Katherine * Bliss

This one sold pretty well, not surprisingly, and went through at least three editions (Feb 1964, Sep 1964, Oct 1964), which may have been a first for Digit as they usually gave new editions a whole new number and it was often years between editions. Originally published in the US by Avon (1962), I can't find any other reference to Stella Fox (well, not this Stella Fox), so I presume it is a pseudonym. The original version seems to have included some poems, which may explain why Sappho, an ancient Greek poet from whom the term sapphic is derived, is mentioned on the cover although none of her work appears inside.

BEAR ALLEY

OUT NOW!ArenaClick here for details and payment options"This book goes straight to the top of my large reading pile" - Graeme Neil Reid"With reality TV overload and the rise of the risque and the brutality of today’s society, this story still has a pertinent message for those of us who are willing to listen to it. In fact, I think the story is more relevant today than it was in 1979." - Colin Noble, Down the Tubes"The story is a fun read, but the star of the show is the art. Alcatena is a class act." - Hibernia Comics

AVAILABLE NOW!Countdown to TV ActionClick here for details and payment options."The perfect compliment to my set of Countdown/TV Action" - Graham Bleathman."A wonderful trip down memory lane. Recommended" - Paul Simpson, Sci-Fi Bulletin"If you read Countdown as a child, you'll be fascinated by this account of its making ... indispensable." - John Freeman, Down the Tubes"The definitive history of the title" - Lew Stringer, Blimey!"I urge you to grab a copy and give Steve Holland a tip of the hat for the amount of hard work, research and love he's poured into making a book of information become an interesting story" - Barnaby Eaton-Jones, The Cult Den

Lion King of Picture Story PapersClick here to order"It's a great read in itself and has sent me back to the Lion comic to re-read some of my childhood favourites. The pictures are reproduced crystal clearly and even this old man can read the original art ... It's a gorgeous book and if we are snow-bound as the media has been saying for weeks, I have plenty to keep me amused this chilly January weekend!" - Norman Boyd.

Sexton Blake Annual 1941Click here to order"If you've been meaning to give Sexton Blake's adventures a try, this would be a great place to start. I've seen the actual annuals go on Ebay for three or four hundred bucks, so this is definitely a bargain too." - Singular Points.

Peter Jackson's London Is Stranger Than FictionClick here to order"The original books have been highly collectable for many years now, but finally they’ve been republished in a single volume from Bear Alley Books ... for the ridiculously reasonable price of £14.99. Do yourself a favour. " Christopher Fowler.